broody disaster

[MatthewsHomestead]

Could always tell them the situation..... They may let you get just 2....?

 

[TelfTheElf]

i had that once and i put a load of fake chicks in there and then she turned into the most calm little sitter ever.
on cuts on chickens i put this stuff called Dr Bach's rescue remedy. it brings out any puss or dirt as well as adding nutrients and numbing the wound a bit.

 

[rebrascora]

If you have been taking them outside, I am wondering if the red chick is coming down with coccidiosis. Do you have any Corid on hand? If not, I would get some and start both chicks on it. I would be inclined to give the red chick a direct dose and then just medicate the water after that. Dosage is 1.5teaspoons of the powder or 2 teaspoons of the liquid Corid to a gallon of water and a new batch mixed fresh every day for 7 days I believe. You can give a drop of the concentrated liquid into the chicks beak to get the ball rolling because if they are too sick, they stop eating and drinking, so don't get the medication in the water. The medicated water must be their only source of water.

 

[midnoight]

Mine says they have a minimum of 6-12 chicks. I went in and bought 3 and no one told me no, not sure if it was because it was a young girl, or they just didn't care. Could always try

ooh I'll see if we can do that. Thanks!!

 

[midnoight]

Also a little mirror!


Or even scrambled softly... This is what a friend got me started on doing for my chicks!

Thank you!!

 

[midnoight]

Our two australorp broodies hatched out two chicks (one to each hen). Our less aggressive broody rejected her red chick before it had even fully hatched, and I moved it to the aggressive hen's nest with her black chick which was happy and healthy. The nest day- both hens were in the same nest (i dont think that's normal). Both chicks were still alive and healthy, although upon sight of the red chick, both hens went berserk and started attacking both chicks, pecking and scratching in the nesting box. I took the two chicks away and set them up in a dog crate setup (one that we'd used to raise our hatchery-bought chicks before). The black chick was perfectly fine- slightly shocked, but fine. The smaller red chick however had a large wound (in comparison to it's body) beneath it's wing. the wound exposed it's leg muscle and what I thought was a bone but I really didn't get a great look at it- i really didn't want to. I put neosporin, vaseline (only a small amount, that's what my parents put on my cuts but>???), and a small circular bandaid to keep out infection. That was all for the first day, and the chick was barely eating and just learning to drink.

The next day was better. The red chick was eating and drinking with the bigger black chick, and I even took them outside for a bit (they got cold, i brought them in after about a minute). I applied more neosporin and kept another small bandaid on the wound. All was good.

The next day, things were looking even brighter! The wound was healing quite nicely, and the chick seemed to be much stronger (although compared to the black chick, which was growing like a freak, it looked meek). I applied more neosporin to try and keep infection out, and took them outside.

Today it seems the red chick has relapsed. It is extremely tired and stopped eating and drinking halfway through the day. I did apply a small bit of neosporin to the wound, which was still healing nicely. I'm very worried, though, as the two chicks seem to be inseparable and I would really hate to see the black chick left all alone until we get our batch of 12 day olds from the hatchery (we're scheduled to get them august 5th).

I'll try and get pictures of the injured chick tomorrow. But with this info, is there anything I could do to try and save the red chick? And if it does pass, is there anything I can do to keep the bigger chick company until we get the day olds?

UPDATE: Red chick passed away this morning. Michael Gary Scott Jr (black chick) escaped the setup and the garage, so i put her in a basket in my living room until my parents got home and set her up in a makeshift brooder in our coop. The broodies are going absolutely insane trying to get to her- but I think the company of the other chickens will keep the chick content until we pick up our remaining chicks.

 

[arrowti]

I am wondering if both hens were trying to kill her because they sensed something was wrong with her (i.e. she wasn't going to make it). That would explain why they were fine with the larger black chick, and not her.

I'm sorry you lost your poor chick. Hopefully you get the other chicks soon so black chick can have a new friend!

 

[karenerwin]

Thanks for updating us about the outcome.
I am sorry that the red chick didn't make it.

Do you think the broodies were trying to get to her to claim her as theirs or to harm her? I imagine that you aren't going to test that theory out.
When you get the new chicks you should be able to put her in with them even though she will be much larger, they should co-exist just fine.

 

[kissezmychicken]

Just food for thought, next time you have a chick that young, especially injured, I would keep it under a heat lamp or heat plate and let it rest. Taking it in and out probably didn't help the situation.

 

[MROO]

I had two tiny chicks with large open attack wounds on the backs of their heads and necks. I sprayed them with Blu-Kote (available at TSC) and kept them hydrated with Pedialyte and they're doing fine, now. Except for the lovely blue-stained feathers, you'd never know they were ever injured.
Oh - and I learned right here on BYC that the "no pain meds" thing is not true. I still avoid it, if possible, though, simply by force of habit. My vet assures me, though, that a little bit of pain can be a good thing. According to the doc, animals instinctively know how to handle their own healing, and blocking the pain completely sends the wrong signal to their brains.